MP claims another success as government announces major funds for South Cumbria

South Lakes MP Tim Farron has celebrated another victory in his campaign to bring jobs and investment to Cumbria as the government announces Rural Growth Network funding for our area.

The government will today announce that, after much lobbying by Tim, the council and business leaders, local businesses will benefit from major investment:

· Eight new work premises at Clawthorpe Hall, LA6 INU,

· Twenty new work premises atMarl,Ulverston,LA12 9BN,

· Eight new work premises at Millom,

· Ten new work premises atUniversityofCumbria, Ambleside,

Tim wrote to the county council in January asking them to make sure thatCumbriabid for the scheme and that theSouthLakeswas prominent within it.Cumbria's bid to become a pilot Rural Growth Network was submitted by the Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and has been named alongside Devon andSomerset, Swindon and Wiltshire, Northumberland andDurham, and Warwickshire as winning through to become pilot schemes.

The Rural Growth Network is part of the £165 million programme of measures that the Government is delivering to grow business and create new job prospects in rural areas.

Tim said: "This is fantastic news and another success in our campaign to bring jobs and investment to Cumbria. I am doing all I can to support the economy and provide well paid jobs for our community. Recently we helped to secure investments for GlaxoSmithKline in Ulverston and Gilkes in Kendal which will create 800 jobs and safeguard hundreds of others. This bid will also help us to unlock extra funding from the private sector. We can and must do even more however and that is why I will continue to work to make the South Lakes Cumbria's economic hub."